Baisley Park Depot (mtamaster edition)
The Baisley Park Depot, located on the intersection of Guy R. Brewer Boulevard and Linden Boulevard, is an MTA Bus Division depot in South Jamaica, Queens. It is currently owned by GTJ Reit Inc. (Green, Triboro, Jamaica, Realty Investment Trust, Inc.), successor to the former operators. The depot was built in 1958, and was operated by Jamaica Buses until January 30, 2006, when it was leased to the City of New York and MTA Bus. Jamaica Buses History Jamaica Buses was a bus company in New York City, United States, operating local service in Queens and express service to Manhattan until January 30, 2006, when the MTA Bus Company took over its operations. The president of Jamaica Buses, and GTJ Reit Inc. was the late Mr. Jerome Cooper (August 14, 1928-May 20, 2015 aged 86). After the bankruptcy of the Long Island Electric Railway in 1926, the trolley lines in Nassau County were disestablished, however the ones in Queens survived, and the company was reorganized as the Jamaica Central Railways. This company would continue to operate streetcars for another six years. Upon reestablishment, the company purchased used trolley cars from companies such as the Empire State Railroad of Oswego, and the New York and Stamford Railway. Many of these cars dated back as far as 1911 and proved to be defective when used on the Far Rockaway Line. The conditions became so dangerous that by the Summer of 1930 the New York State Public Service Commission intervened and demanded that they trade the cars in for those from the Eastern Massachusetts Street Railway. Unfortunately, those cars proved to be inadequate, and that line was eventually abandoned. Cars on other lines inherited from the LIER did not suffer such misfortunes. In 1930, the City of New York granted the company a bus franchise service named Jamaica Buses, a subsidiary of Jamaica Central Railways. By 1933 it operated buses over all the JCR trolley lines, which were being closed due to the widening of Jamaica Avenue. It was later acquired by the stockholders of Green Bus Lines after financial troubles, and in the 1970s an express route to Manhattan was initiated. In 2004, 25 Articulated buses were delivered for testing on the Q113 (and later Q114) routes. By the end of 2016, the Q64 (now in JFK Depot) and Q111 began using artics as well with delivery of new buses for MTA Bus. Bus Routes Just prior to MTA Bus takeover, Jamaica Buses operated on the following routes that are now based in Baisley Park Bus Depot: Queens local *Q110 Jamaica - Belmont Park, via Jamaica Avenue, originally Route A *Q111 Jamaica - Rosedale, via Guy Brewer Boulevard, originally Route E *Q112 Jamaica - Ozone Park, via Liberty Avenue, originally Route C Limited stops and Local services *Q113 Jamaica - Far Rockaway, via Guy Brewer Boulevard, Limited only, originally Route D *Q114 Jamaica - Far Rockaway, via Guy Brewer Boulevard, originally Route B, then Q113 local Queens-Manhattan express *QM21 Rochdale Village - Gramercy Park, Manhattan Express Baisley Park also began operating the Q64 after it was transfered from College Point Depot to Baisley Park in 2014. The QM4 also operated out of the College Point Depot until 2016. Later in the year, the QM44 was created to ease confusion between the Third Avenue and Sixth Avenue branches of the QM4. In 2019, the Q64 was swapped with the Q89 route with JFK. In 2020, the Q64 was sent back to Baisley Park, with the QM4 and QM44 sent to College Point. Fleet Operation History (during MTA Bus) MCI Classic (2005-2006) RTS (2006-2009) Bee-line Orion V (2009-2014) New Flyer D60 (2004-2019) Orion VII Gen II Hybrid (2018-2019) Orion VII Gen II+ Hybrid (2006-present) Orion VII NG (2007-2008) 2015-16 XD60 (2016-present) Express MCI Classic (2005-2006) MCI D45 (2016-2020) MCI CL (2005-present)